[Cyrene]
The wind blew, and I smelled blood and fear. It's quite obvious.
Ilang talampakan ang layo namin, pero ramdam ko ang paggalaw ng kahoy na tinatapakan ko dahil sa lakas ng panginginig ng lalaking nakatingin sa akin.
"Shout, you die. Move, you die. Speak without my permission, you die. Nod if you understand, deputy," malamig kong sambit. Hindi ko inaalis ang tingin ko sa mga mata niya.
Pinagpapawisan, dahan-dahan siyang tumango. Tinapunan ko ng tingin si Hunter na nasa likuran niya, pasimple itong sinenyasan na parang nagkakaintindihan kami sa pamamagitan ng tingin.
Dahan-dahan niyang tinanggal ang kamay niya sa bunganga ng deputy. Maigi ko siyang pinakiramdaman, inaabangan kung sakaling kumilos siya nang masama.
But I know human instincts. Their first response in this kind of situation . . . is to obey.
"You must be confused. You must be questioning yourself," ani ko na para bang nababasa ko siya nang husto. "Is she the person I met a while ago? How did they come here? Why are there bloodsuckers?" sunod-sunod na tanong ko na alam kong gusto niyang sabihin.
"Unfortunately, I'm not a good storyteller, so I can't give you the details." I raised both of my eyebrows, noticing a movement from his lips.
"W-What . . are you?-"
"Did I tell you to speak?" my tone didn't change, I sounded calm. But as I saw his body tremble and his skin become more pale, I knew it had a negative effect on him.
"I don't owe you any answers. But I want to maintain our friendly relationship. We need our district to stay here for a while, what do you think?"
As if his whole body shut down. His pupils shrank, he couldn't show any expression maybe because he didn't know how to react. He was dumbstruck, horrified. Hindi alintana ang patalim na nakatutok sa kaniya, wala sa sarili siyang napaatras. Pilit siyang umiling.
"P-Please, let me l-live . . ."
"Is that the answer to my question?-"
"P-P-Please, just take whoever you want. Then leave--"
Bargaining.
"We will stay here-"
"M-My daughter! She's pure! I made sure of that! I bet she will be delicious!-"
"Deputy."
"YOU FUCKING BITCH! YOU STUPID! I WON'T LET MONSTERS LIKE YOU LIVE HERE!"
Despair.
"I'M LETTING YOU CHOOSE! PICK! PICK WHOEVER YOU WANT! JUST PLEASE LEAVE! I CAN'T LET THE GOVERNMENT KNOW THAT I LET BLOODSUCKERS IN HERE! LEAVE!"
We let him shout. Despite the chances that someone might hear him. I don't know if he's threatening me, he's angry, or begging. He went on his knees, still screaming at me but begging at the same time.
Disgusting . . .
Lumuhod siya papalapit sa 'kin, nakaangat ang tingin. Nagkadikit ang mga palad na parang nagdadasal, pero sa isang demonyo. Pinanood lang siya ng mga kasama ko.
"Please! Please!"
I don't know what he fears more, vampires, or his position as deputy. Being a deputy of a well-known low-case district.
"Deputy, do you hate vampires that much?" I asked, making him stop. Napalunok siya nang malalim, hindi alam kung sasagutin ang tanong ko. The safety of his head will be determined by his answer. I leaned towards him, magkatapat ang mga mukha namin. "How about this, do you care for yourself so much that you're willing to sacrifice the people in the district, even your child for your safety?"
Hindi ulit siya kaagad nakasagot. But this time, he has an answer.
"They . . . a-are willing to sacrifice themselves for me."
Those words aren't the ones I wanted to hear, but it's kind of what I've expected. "I see." Umangat ako at umayos ng tayo.
"Was that enough?" I asked a question, but this time it wasn't for him. Tila natigilan ang deputy nang dumeretso ang tingin ko, papunta sa likuran niya kung nasaan ang pinto. He was stunned and didn't know if he would look behind him or not. But in the end, he chose to see what— who am I looking at.
Standing at the door, looking and watching us. Is a woman filled with disgust, hatred, disappointment, and despair. Looking at her husband begging to take the people and his child instead to save him and his reputation.
Bumagsak ang mukha ng lalaking nakaluhod. Now that I watch him, he looks like he turned 10 years older.
"A-Alisa-" Hindi mabuo ng deputy ang mga salita niya. Nalipat mula sa 'kin papunta sa asawa niya ang pagkakaluhod nya. "C-CALL HUNTERS! THERE ARE BLOODSUCKERS HERE! HURRY!-" He stopped midway when he realized that his wife is not moving, only staring at him.
"A-A-Alisa?"
His wife stared at him, looking down. The nice and gentle woman I felt and saw earlier was nowhere to be found. Bumuka ang bibig niya, sinundan ng salita.
"I-I hope you rot in hell."
I remained calm, watching them. It's the sign I was waiting for. I glanced at Noir who was next to me, gesturing him.
"I'm sorry," ani ko, pagpapaumanhin para sa gagawin niya.
Napatayo siya nang tuwid, bago maglakad. "It's not like you forced me to do this, I volunteered. And it's better for me to do it," malamig niyang sagot bago ako daanan.
I watched his back as he went towards the deputy who's begging his wife. I didn't move from my position.
Earlier this evening, I talked to the deputy's wife together with our district's doctor. It turns out, they knew each other from before. Nang pinakita ko kung sino ako sa kaniya, hindi kami gaanong nahirapan na kumbinsihin siya na tulungan kami dahil may tiwala siya sa doktor. I told her about her husband. She said she knew how he acts, but he was a great father.
So I told her our plan, and if he is indeed a good father despite not being a good husband, I'll respect her decision. I'll ask her to forget what happened, and we will leave. Which is I know that won't happen since I know how her husband will act. I've seen his kind before, dozens of them.
Naglakad papalapit si Noir sa deputy, mariing hinawakan ang ulo niya. Gumalaw-galaw ang kamay niya, pilit na inaabot ang asawa.
"ALISA! A-ALISA!!!! PUTANGINA, ALISA!!!!"
Walang pag-aalinlangan, dumikit ang pangil ni Noir sa leeg niya. Naamoy ko kaagad ang sariwang dugo, sumabay ang buhok ko sa hangin mula sa bintana na nasa likuran ko.
"Deputy, thank you for helping us," I said as if he could still hear me with his screams filling up the room. "I give you my word that no one will be hurt in this district, not one child nor animal. We only seek shelter, in exchange, we will provide you protection."
"From now on, your wife will be the standing leader of this district. The deputy is sick, he will be isolated because he is contaminated. The only people who know his sickness are our district's doctor and his wife."
"One of us will take care of you, don't worry, until you regain your sanity. And by then, you wouldn't— no, you can't move us away nor tell about our district . . . because you're already one of us."
━━━ † ━━━
BINABASA MO ANG
Blood Hunt : Project Zero
FantastikHumans no longer hunt for food, for they're the ones being hunted now. Losing her loved ones and growing up hating bloodsuckers, Cyrene was the first successful human subject to have the abilities of a vampire- Project Zero. Swearing to avenge her...
